Stalwart Guard
by Chaos's Prototype
Summary: Throughout the many years that passed and the many trials they went through, he has changed the least. He is still what he has always been, regardless of a new name or face: A protector.


**A/N: **It's the Japanese _Birth by Sleep _anniversary! Have some Aeleus (and Lexaeus) fic.

This starts prior to _Birth by Sleep_ and is from an Aeleus centric point of view.

**Spoilers: For _Birth by Sleep_, _Kingdom Hearts I_, _Re: Chain of Memories_, and _Dream Drop Distance_.**

* * *

He was so small. The blank-faced child that joined them, that worked beside him, was so small. Aeleus had seen him occasionally, almost always with Ansem, for two months before he registered any more than the boy's unsettling gaze and apparent aversion to others.

His size didn't seem strange—he was a child, after all. It only stood out to him when the boy became an apprentice as well, when he began to speak, using words that children several years his senior would not have known or understood. That was when he noticed.

That must have been why Aeleus took it upon himself to protect the boy as best he could, just as he protected the castle and everyone else. Ansem may have been the boy's guardian and Even may have watched over him, but Aeleus would be his protector.

For a long time, there was little to protect him from. Radiant Garden was a relatively safe place and though Ienzo managed many times to find his way off castle grounds without Ansem or Even's knowledge, he was fine.

When the Unversed started appearing, that changed. The castle guardsmen suddenly had much more to defend against than bored children trying to get past the gates. Though they only roamed the world for a month's time, they taught Aeleus to be cautious. The day they made it into the castle taught him that.

If he had been more alert, things might have been different, people might not have died. As it was, they were lucky that Ienzo was alive, saved by a boy who was gone nearly as soon as he appeared when he was surrounded by the creatures merely a day earlier. Yet after they were gone, more danger was still to come.

The same week that the Unversed disappeared, Braig found Xehanort, who would come to lead their research on the heart. Their experiments soon introduced a new form of darkness, the Heartless. This time, the monsters didn't even have to break past the gates and into the castle. They were already there.

By the time Master Ansem had forbid continuing the research and the apprentices had taken their work to the secret laboratories, the guard force had thinned significantly, though all of them had not fallen to a Heartless_ attack _necessarily.

It continued like this until Dilan, Braig, and himself were the only ones left. And that was fine, because very soon it would not matter.

* * *

Ansem was gone. Now research was being done freely, as was experimentation. With him gone, Xehanort had taken even more control, directing their work in exactly the way he wanted, rejecting anything less.

In a way, that was almost a challenge. If something they did was sub par, it would be fixed until it went far past expectations. If it was his aim to use that fact to his advantage, as a motivator beyond simply making new discoveries, it was working.

Not all of them necessarily agreed with the man's new assumed authority—Even, in particular, had complained about it on many occasions, though never while Xehanort was within earshot—but none of them did anything about it. No one tried to bring him back to an equal level or protested when he claimed Ansem's former study for himself.

Maybe it was because they were approaching the answers they had been seeking, maybe it was because he hadn't truly been their 'equal' for a long while. Even if the latter was true, that wasn't important right now. They would worry about sorting out ranks later, because now their goals were all finally within their grasps.

* * *

When Aeleus finally drug himself out of the gray, empty void, he _hurt_. The stabbing, burning pain in his chest was all he knew. It didn't matter what the cause was, he didn't care; it just needed to _stop_.

But it didn't really stop, even after he stayed there, in the darkness behind closed eyelids, for what must have been hours. He just adjusted, slowly opening his eyes to slits when it faded to a slightly less immobilizing degree. It was still agonizing, more so than he thought he should be able to survive.

The light of his surroundings, while dim, still felt piercing. Not that it was easy to tell the difference when everything felt that way already. After squinting his eyes shut reflexively, he tried again, even more painstakingly slowly that before. It wasn't quite as bad this time, but he didn't remember everything being that blindingly white. The only spots of color were the two bodies lying next to him.

_Bodies?_

And they seemed to be waking up. The one farthest away from him was struggling to his feet. Now he could see it was Even, the older man locking eyes with him for a brief second. The other, much smaller body fidgeted, making a gasping noise that seemed loud from the absence of sound. It was the only noise he'd heard since he had-

Since he had _died_. Since Xehanort had stabbed him through the chest with his blade—his _Key_blade—after doing the same to Dilan. This wasn't Radiant Garden.

_And he had gotten to the others_.

He shoved himself into a sitting position, straining to keep from shouting as his body protested, his nerve endings feeling as if they had been lit on fire. He should have done that slower.

The smaller body moved again, coughing and rolling off of his side to try to get up as well. Aeleus recognized it as Ienzo almost immediately, grabbing the boy's shoulder and pulling him the rest of the way, even as they both winced.

Aeleus didn't wait before trying to stand up, wanting it over sooner rather than later. Again, pain jolted through him with every movement until he was finally leaning heavily against the wall. He groaned as he pulled Ienzo up after him, wishing he could just stay there and never have to move again.

"It hurts," Ienzo whispered, one arm wrapped around his chest and the other bracing himself against the wall. Even gave a shaky sigh in agreement, barely ahead of them.

They began the search for the others, shuffling along slowly through the endless white halls. None of them spoke anymore, not once in what felt like miles, not even when they had to stop to rest. As they walked, Aeleus just listened to the breathing of his two friends. It would be one of the last times he would think of them that way.

* * *

It was a few days later, after they had received their new names and ranks, that any of them really understood what it meant to not have a heart. At first, they all felt too dead to tell whether they still had emotions or reactions. At that point, they might not have noticed if they didn't even have thoughts.

For days, they didn't notice the other two new 'Nobodies', both from the Garden just as they were. Even if they had noticed, they wouldn't have cared. After the chaos and destruction of their final days in Radiant Garden—memories of which were starting to slowly return—everything was suddenly silent. There was nothing.

Once they finally began to come to terms with what had happened again, shock breaking up any realizations they had made on their first day, things slowly began to piece together. The boys that he had dragged off castle grounds so many times were now VII and VIII of their number. Axel and Saïx, he thought their names were.

Names had become so much more important within a few days in the 'Organization' than they had ever been in his previous life. It was safer to call another member by the number of their rank than risk getting their name wrong. He had yet to call the others by anything other than numbers.

There was one number that seemed to bear more weight than any name, though: Thirteen. They were called Organization XIII, despite having only eight members. If their leader was really Xehanort without a heart, then there was a reason that he had named it that. What would that mean for the thirteenth member if they should ever reach that many? If names were of a greater significance, why choose a number as part of their title? Why choose it as the most important, distinguishing part of their title?

Xehanort had been fond of symbolism as long as he had known him, perhaps that was it. Lexaeus was not aware of any particular association that the man had given to 'thirteen', but that didn't rule out the possibility. He would have to ask one of the others about that. II would likely be the best, with how much time Braig had spent with him, but the man had begun to act strangely. Lexaeus wasn't sure if the shock had completely worn off yet.

He was starting to fake emotions and claim that nothing had changed. Not to say that he was _good _at pretending to have a heart, instead making himself seem even more inhuman than the lack of emotion did. He said that there was no reason to pretend that their new lives were any different than their old ones.

"Almost like we never left, you know." II tried to grin, though it resembled a grimace more than anything else. Lexaeus was thankful he hadn't tried to laugh. "Same faces, right?" The almost amiable tone did not match the dead look in the man's golden eye.

No one in the room spoke a single word. Most didn't even acknowledge that he'd said anything at all.

II's smile fell, the arm he had been gesturing unenthusiastically with dropping down onto his knee. "Yeah."

The room fell back into empty, expressionless silence again. It wouldn't last. That night, or what would have been night in the garden, as this new world had no true day, the madness began to spread.

"He isn't completely wrong," VI said. "Why should we pretend things have changed?"

Lexaeus thought of a reply immediately, but couldn't find a reason to speak right away. Several moments passed before he even said, "Because they have."

VI shook his head, so slightly that Lexaeus was almost sure it wasn't purposeful, then went quiet again. The boy stared ahead past Lexaeus, either lost in thought or experiencing the same struggle for motivation as he had. He realized that the boy had the same empty gaze that Ienzo used to have.

Lexaeus shouldn't have been surprised when VI was soon drawn into the masquerade as well, turning II's unanswered comments in the Grey Area into entire conversations. They still used unnatural tones and false expressions, but they improved. Others soon followed their examples, attempting the same with a similar steady progression. Soon _he _was.

Maybe he didn't want things to change, either.

* * *

Nine years went by without the Organization moving any closer to their goal, Kingdom Hearts. Even by the time they had reached twelve members, they still lacked the Keyblade necessary to collect hearts. Then came the thirteenth, the Nobody of Sora, the Keybearer that had defeated Maleficent and released almost all of the lost worlds from the darkness.

It was a sudden reminder of the days when he had searched for the importance of this number. Xigbar had joked that the Superior must have been psychic. Then days later, the time of the Castle Oblivion mission was finally finalized, set for much earlier than expected. Almost as soon as Roxas's training was completed, they would leave. Not that the timeline of the mission was the most unusual, or even concerning, part.

Marluxia, Number XI, had been chosen as the head of the mission, to be the temporary leader of those assigned to the castle. With the rumors of treason that had only increased in frequency lately, he should have been the last choice. Something was not right.

That thought had not changed by the night before they were to leave.

"I expect you've heard?" Lexaeus asked.

"Unfortunately. I had the displeasure of informing Vexen," Zexion muttered. "I've heard more than enough about it."

"It's strange that the Superior would choose him."

Suspicious, you mean. Or a bit unsettling, if you take it to mean that he trusts Marluxia more than he does us."

Lexaeus frowned. Zexion had noticed as well.

"The real question," he continued. "Is what do we do about it?"

"We wait."

"Until _what_, exactly?" Zexion challenged. "We wind up as casualties in one of Marluxia's plans?"

"You're being paranoid."

"I have every right to be."

"The first phase of the mission is only two weeks. We can reconsider then, if not sooner."

Zexion didn't answer immediately. "Fine," he finally agreed. "but be on your guard."

He always was.

* * *

The thought flickered through Lexaeus's hazy mind, _"Forgive me, Zexion. This was a fight I should not have started."_ It was his first sense of consciousness in...he wasn't sure how long. The only thing he could remember was the battle against Riku, then being submerged in darkness—again—like some form of karmic déjà vu. The returning feeling of being stabbed through his chest and the feeling that he should be dead only added to it.

The only difference was that now he was so _tired_. Last time he had been in too much pain to be tired, but now the only thing that kept him from getting up was the fatigue that made his limbs feel like lead. That feeling didn't change as he slowly pushed himself up off of the floor, stumbling back as his legs seemed to fail him.

He could see Axel standing a few feet away now, staring through a window, and Zexion still getting up beside him. For some reason, Xaldin and Vexen were on the floor as well. Axel muttered something he couldn't make out.

The man chuckled and turned back towards him, grinning. "Been a while."

How long _had _it been? He heard someone gasp from the floor and suddenly Zexion scrambled to his feet, swaying on unsteady legs to the point that he nearly fell back to the floor. He looked almost panicked.

Axel's grin faltered. "Hey," he said, crossing his arms, his eyes darting between the other two men uncertainly.

"You _traitor_." Zexion was backed up against the wall, and it was harder to tell if it was only for support than it should have been. He almost never feigned emotions unless it was for effect or his own gain; Lexaeus had never seen him act afraid.

"Come on, I was just following orders." The man rolled his shoulders back, adding almost pointedly, "We all were."

"What orders?" Lexaeus demanded, taking a step toward Axel. Something was wrong, even if he didn't know entirely what it was. He had never trusted Axel.

He waved dismissively, glancing up at the ceiling. "You know. Keep dissension from forming in the ranks. Make sure that the entire Organization didn't get split in two when we got back from Castle Oblivion."

"Your _orders_ were to eliminate the traitors," Zexion hissed.

"Those weren't my only orders." He glanced anxiously at Lexaeus again. "That doesn't matter anymore, though-"

"It _doesn't matter_?!"

Lexaeus went to summon Skysplitter, his hand closing tightly around the hilt that had not yet formed. They had not acted soon enough last time. He would not make that mistake again.

The weapon did not come to him immediately, hesitating and leaving him clutching only empty air for longer than he would have liked. This hesitation gave Axel a chance to respond, throwing his arms out in alarm. "Waitaminute—we're real!" With merely a second's pause, not giving them a chance to react with more than their expressions of fear and anger twisting into shock, he amended, "We're _whole _again."

Still, neither of them said anything, the silence tense with the decision of whether to believe him, wondering if they would place any sort of trust in him. Lexaeus—the idea that he might be Aeleus was strange, almost uncomfortable—didn't even know all of what the other man had done and he was still unsure.

"Xigbar and the Superior aren't here," Zexion—Ienzo?—murmured, looking down at Even and Dilan, still unresponsive.

"I know. Isa's gone, too," Ax—Lea said, running a hand back through his hair. "They might be somewhere else in the castle." He headed towards the door to the walkway that lead back into the castle proper. "I'll circle around to the study-" _Ansem's _study, Aeleus couldn't help but finish. "-when I'm done."

When he was gone, Ienzo finally seemed to relax, through the frantic look still lingered. He slid down against the wall, sitting on the floor. "I'm fine," he muttered, before Aeleus could even ask. "I was just...surprised." For once, he struggled to find the right word.

If he thought that there was a chance that he would answer, Aeleus would have asked what had happened that could have made him so 'surprised' on simply seeing Lea's face. Instead, he said, "We haven't had hearts in ten years." He set a hand against his chest, finally noticing he was no longer wearing a black cloak, but his old guardsman uniform, as was Dilan. Even and Ienzo both wore lab coats. He wondered briefly why Axel was the only to still wear clothing from the Organization. "It may take a while to get used to having one again."

"Yes..." He looked down at Even and Dilan's bodies. "Why aren't they waking up, do you think?"

"The regeneration process varies," Aeleus said, remembering one of their projects from the Organization's early days. "It's the same as it was last time."

"I don't think we should leave them here," he murmured, not meeting Aeleus's eyes. "Not until they wake."

"We have to meet Lea eventually."

"I know." He sighed. "I know, but it can wait. It will take him some time to patrol the entire grounds—as you might recall. We can stay here a while."

_Worry_. That was it, or at least part of it. Aeleus felt it as well. "Not long," he said, sitting down beside him. "Five minutes."

Ienzo smiled a little, the sincere amusement looking odd on his face. "Six."

* * *

It was strange how much things had again changed so quickly. Only a year ago—or was it two? He was never completely sure, what with being out of commission for so long—all of them had been allied with Xehanort. Now, Lea was one of the seven Lights, Even, Dilan, Ienzo, and himself assisted them regularly, and he had heard that the former members on other worlds had been helping where they could.

Ironic or not, their former research on the heart had proved surprisingly useful so far, as were the continuing projects on the worlds and the barriers between them. He wasn't sure they were entirely trusted all the time, but that was all right; he could understand that.

Aeleus was certain there would come more that they could do as time went on. The thirteenth member had recently been seen and, if Sora and Lea were to be believed, Even's recollections of the Replica Project could soon be very important. They had started this war and they would do whatever they could to end it.

And, hopefully, they would all make it out alive. He might have failed to protect his family when it mattered most, but he would not fail again.


End file.
